European Solidarity In Times Of Crisis

This open access volume provides evidence-based knowledge on European solidarity and citizen responses in times of crisis. Does the crisis of European integration translate into a crisis of European solidarity, and if yes, what are the manifestations at the level of individual citizens? How strongly is solidarity rooted at the individual level, both in terms of attitudes and practices? And which driving factors and mechanisms contribute to the reproduction and/or corrosion of solidarity in times of crisis? Using findings from the EU Horizon 2020 funded research project “European paths to transnational solidarity at times of crisis: Conditions, forms, role-models and policy responses” (TransSOL), the books addresses these questions and provides cross-national comparisons of eight European countries – Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Poland, Switzerland, and the UK. It will appeal to students, scholars and policymakers interested in the Eurocrisis, politics and sociology.

The euro crisis, several sovereign debt crises, the Great Recession, the refugee crisis, and Brexit have all challenged Europeans' willingness to show solidarity with other European citizens and member states of the European Union. European Solidarity in Times of Crisis provides a clear theoretical framework to understand European solidarity for the first time. It offers a systematic empirical approach to determine the strength and causes of European solidarity. The authors distinguish between four domains of solidarity and test a set of theoretically derived criteria with a unique dataset to investigate European solidarity. Based on a survey conducted in thirteen EU member states in 2016, the empirical analysis leads to some unanticipated results. Europeans display a notably higher degree of solidarity than many politicians and social scientists have presumed so far. This especially applies to the support of people in need (welfare solidarity) and the reduction of territorial disparities between rich and poor EU countries (territorial solidarity), but also to the domain of fiscal solidarity (financial support of indebted EU countries). This optimistic view is less true for the domain of refugee solidarity. While citizens of western and southern EU countries accept the accommodation of refugees and their allocation between European countries, the majority of people in eastern European countries do not share this point of view. The book will appeal to students and scholars in fields such as comparative sociology, political science, social policy and migration research, and European studies. It is also relevant to a non-academic audience interested in the development of the European project.

This open access volume provides evidence-based knowledge on European solidarity and citizen responses in times of crisis. Does the crisis of European integration translate into a crisis of European solidarity, and if yes, what are the manifestations at the level of individual citizens? How strongly is solidarity rooted at the individual level, both in terms of attitudes and practices? And which driving factors and mechanisms contribute to the reproduction and/or corrosion of solidarity in times of crisis? Using findings from the EU Horizon 2020 funded research project "European paths to transnational solidarity at times of crisis: Conditions, forms, role-models and policy responses" (TransSOL), the books addresses these questions and provides cross-national comparisons of eight European countries - Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Poland, Switzerland, and the UK. It will appeal to students, scholars and policymakers interested in the Eurocrisis, politics and sociology. This work was published by Saint Philip Street Press pursuant to a Creative Commons license permitting commercial use. All rights not granted by the work's license are retained by the author or authors.

The euro crisis, several sovereign debt crises, the Great Recession, the refugee crisis, and Brexit have all challenged Europeans’ willingness to show solidarity with other European citizens and member states of the European Union. European Solidarity in Times of Crisis provides a clear theoretical framework to understand European solidarity for the first time. It offers a systematic empirical approach to determine the strength and causes of European solidarity. The authors distinguish between four domains of solidarity and test a set of theoretically derived criteria with a unique dataset to investigate European solidarity. Based on a survey conducted in thirteen EU member states in 2016, the empirical analysis leads to some unanticipated results. Europeans display a notably higher degree of solidarity than many politicians and social scientists have presumed so far. This especially applies to the support of people in need (welfare solidarity) and the reduction of territorial disparities between rich and poor EU countries (territorial solidarity), but also to the domain of fiscal solidarity (financial support of indebted EU countries). This optimistic view is less true for the domain of refugee solidarity. While citizens of western and southern EU countries accept the accommodation of refugees and their allocation between European countries, the majority of people in eastern European countries do not share this point of view. The book will appeal to students and scholars in fields such as comparative sociology, political science, social policy and migration research, and European studies. It is also relevant to a non-academic audience interested in the development of the European project.

This open access collection is devoted to an in-depth, qualitative analysis of practices of cross-national solidarity in response to the current political and social crises, from citizens’ initiatives to networks of cooperation among civil society actors. The book analyses existing informal groups at the grassroots, furthering transnational solidarity in three thematic areas: disability, unemployment and immigration. Contributions assess how civic groups respond to the various crises affecting Europe, especially the economic and refugee crises, presenting new findings from a systematic comparative study conducted in eight European countries (Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Poland, Switzerland, and the UK). The research will be of interest to scholars, students, journalists, policy-makers and activists interested in civil society, social movements, charitable actions, altruism and solidarity, as well as European studies and the socio-economic challenges of current European crises.

This volume approaches the current crisis of solidarity in the European Union from a multidisciplinary perspective. The contributions explore the concept of solidarity, its role in the European integration process, and analyze the risks entailed by a lack of solidarity. Experts from various academic fields, such as political science, law, sociology, and philosophy, shed new light on contemporary challenges such as the migrant and refugee crisis, the Eurozone crisis, nationalist and separatist movements, and Brexit. Finally, they also discuss different solutions for the most pressing problems in EU politics. The book has two main aims: Firstly, to show that solidarity is a key element in solving the EU’s contemporary problems; and secondly, to reveal how the crisis of solidarity has become a crucial test for the integration project, as the nature of the crisis goes beyond the well-known shortcomings in the EU’s structure and problem-solving capacities.

Citizens’ Solidarity in Europe systematically dissects the manifestations of solidarity buried beneath the official policies and measures of public authority in Europe. In this exciting and innovative book, contributors offer comprehensive and original data and highlight the detrimental factors that tend to inhibit or annihilate solidarity, and those that are beneficial for the nurturing of solidarity.

Introduction /Christian Lahusen and Veronica Federico --Denmark /Deniz Neriman Duru, Thomas Spejlborg Sejersen and Hans-Jörg Trenz --France /Manilo Cinalli, Carlo de Nuzzo --Germany /Ulrike Zschache --Greece /Maria M. Mexi --Italy /Veronica Federico and Nicola Maggini --Poland /Janina Petelczyc --Switzerland /Eva Fernández G.G. and Délia Girod --The United Kingdom /Tom Montgomery and Simone Baglioni --Solidarity in the European Union in times of crisis : towards "European solidarity"? /Ester di Napoli and Deborah Russo --Solidarity in times of crisis : disability, immigration and unemployment in Denmark /Deniz Neriman Duru, Thomas Spejlborg Sejersen and Hans-Jörg Trenz --Disability, unemployment, immigraiton : does solidarity matter in times of crisis in France? /Manilo Cinalli, Carlo de Nuzzo --Disability, unemployment, immigration : the implicit role of solidarity in German legislation /Ulrike Zschache --Greece in times of multiple crises : solidarity under stress? /Maria M. Mexi --Disability, unemployment, immigration : does solidarity matter at times of crisis in Italy? /Veronica Federico and Nicola Maggini --Disability, unemployment, immigration : does solidarity matter in times of crisis? : the Polish case /Janina Petelczyc --Switzerland : vulnerable groups and multiple solidarities in a composite state /Eva Fernández G.G. and Tania Abbiate --Solidarity in austerity Britain : the cases of disability, unemployment and migration /Tony Montgomery and Simone Baglioni --Conclusion:Solidarity as a public virture? /Veronica Federico.